<
https://theconversation.com/we-spoke-to-the-exhausted-flood-response-teams-in-the-hunter-valley-heres-what-they-need-when-the-next-floods-strike-192863>
"People living in the Hunter region of New South Wales know all too well the
devastation disasters can bring. After enduring the 2019-2020 horror bushfire
season, La Niña settled in for three wet summers and residents experienced
back-to-back floods.
Since early October, we’ve conducted nine in-depth interviews with members of
flood-response teams in the Hunter for our ongoing qualitative research into
how prepared these communities are for future floods. Many people in the Hunter
are living in temporary accommodation. A councillor we spoke to pointed out,
“there are still people living in caravans, and they’ll be in caravans for
quite some time”.
For the Northern Rivers region, which was ravaged by record-breaking floods in
February and March this year, some relief is coming.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet today
announced a A$800 million buyback scheme for residents in seven areas –
including Lismore, Ballina and Tweed – where “major flooding would pose a
catastrophic risk to life”. Some 2,000 homeowners will be eligible for funding
to sell their homes, repair damage, or make their homes more resilient.
More flooding is expected across eastern Australia in coming weeks, as La Niña
conditions are set to persist until early 2023. This is a time to take stock of
the lessons gained from the previous spate of floods, and to assess how
agencies and communities are heeding these lessons to manage coming floods."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
